Alex Rider 7
by dude in town
Summary: The thrilling story after Ark Angel


ALEX RIDER, sat down on the gondolas of Venice. It had been one year since Scorpia assaulted him with a sniper, since then, he had grown more mature of his surroundings. Today, he was thinking at the offer MI6 had given him, he also was thinking about the words that Yassen Gregorovich had said to him while on the flight of Damian Cray.

_Find Scorpia and you will find your destiny…_

Now, Alex knew more about his father's life, John Rider was a spy. MI6 had given him an opportunity to leave him alone until they needed help. Hah! Some offer, it was aberrant for MI6 to try and cool him down.

Somehow, he redirected his thoughts to Sabina Pleasure who had left for San Francisco, it had been certainly quiet since they had left to San Francisco and even though Alex was more mature, he allowed a tear to drip across his face: he wished that he had said more to Sabina, there was so many more things that he could of shared. It had been a year and Edward Pleasure had not been heard on his debut of, 'The life of Damian Cray.' Then again, it would take some time to write a biography, after all, Edward Pleasure had a primary source to account for Damian Cray; Sabina. Alex had it, it was through, every time he saw a horse stroll across the walks on London, he had seen Sabina Pleasure envisioned, waving at him. In her helmet and the pale, ghostly face, the pink jockey pants and a smile.

Alex suddenly felt drawn to the joke Sabina made on the beaches on the South of France,

_I wonder how I would rate now_,

He remembered that Sabina rated him as a twelve and a half out of twenty, am I now twenty. Nah, probably a fifteen as it was his age.

Sabina Pleasure sat down on the sofa in her bedroom as she found herself gazing out at the harbour of San Francisco. The blond teenager she had kissed a year ago appeared in her mind,

_I wonder how Alex is?_

It had been lonely without a companion and Sabina knew that they would never see each other again, the moment she set foot on the abaft of the ship that delivered her to America; it felt like she was leaving an old friend. Sabina saw her friend set foot off to the countryside, past the swans on the right and the cows on the left. Sabina recalled what Alex had done to help her when Yassen had kidnapped her and bounded her; all he cared was for her, he never cared of he got killed. And then, there was the affair of Ark Angel, clearly the MI6 had brought him up again.

'Sabina, Sabina dear,'

Sabina turned, clearly, she had been lost in thoughts that she hadn't realised that her mother had called her.

'Sabina,' her mother's head poked through the door, 'I will be going out with your father ok, if the phone rings, turn on the TV and make it sound that you are accompanied ok?'

'Oh, and don't open the door to strangers,'

'Sure,'

Sabina returned to staring at the dark blue sky with a touch of orange, she heard the door slam and knew that she was home, alone.

Tring! Tring! The phone rang and Sabina flickered the controller to a channel which coincidentally showed Oprah and Tyra Banks.

'Yes?'

'Sab, it's …'

It was the nickname that Alex Rider had called her once upon a time.

'Sab, it's me, Chelsea and I'm with Jess, wanna come over? Ask your folks and we're having a slumber party.'

'My parents are out,' Sabina replied dully and yawned.

A black car ran up the driveway and within a minute, the door rang with a ding! Sabina crept down and after several ringing the bell moments, the man or at least it sounded like a man called, 'Hello, Mr and Mrs Pleasure, we have arrived to deliver you the parcel,'

Sabina held the phone in the palm of her hands as she opened the door about to tell the man that her parents were not at home and to try later. Once again, she ended up captured.

The last thing that Jess and Chelsea heard was a yell that they would never forget for another few years to come.

Tue 26 September 2006, 08: 07: 24 pm

Alex Rider sat at Mr Blunt's desk, confused as ever, he was flown to Liverpool Street by a helicopter and was told to sit down by a blearily faced Mr Blunt. Mr Blunt and Mrs Jones seemed nervous and Alex could not help but wondering why.

'A few hours ago, Sabina Pleasure was kidnapped by a group of Scorpia agents led by an Australian corporate in her San Francisco house and we have had this note sent to us by a man, wearing a black blazer who left Downing Street an hour ago.' Alex Rider opened his hand to reach for the note but was pushed aback. Mr Blunt continued, 'A copy has been sent to the prime minister by Sir Adair and another was given to us by the new director of communications, (Mr Kellner had been replaced shortly after the previous Scorpia incident) Mr Gustave. He is currently discussing the threat at COBRA.'

Dear MI6 and Prime minister,

It has come to our unfortunate attention that Alex Rider has survived the sniper attack that we planned, it is no problem to hunt the sniper as we have dealt with him and we can assure you that the world has one assassin less than last week. A client in Hong Kong has been interested in exterminating the MI6 and the other agencies; furthermore, he would like to exterminate some agents.

We have developed a new weapon known as Secret Ryo Strike which will devastate Europe, please note that this is not a hollow threat. To ensure this, we shall demonstrate the force of Secret Ryo Strike at 6:00pm at the Liverpool Docks. A ship known as the 'Unsinkable,' will arrive at the dock, with Secret Ryo Strike, all the crewman will disappear and the ship's cargo will be displaced under the sea one hundred metres down1. It is a teleporting device. We repeat: This is not a hollow threat. You will receive no other notice from us. The following views are non negotiable.

Scorpia corporate has agreed on the terms:

Disbandment of American Nuclear Missiles

Removal of MI6, CIA and MI5

Abdicating the president of America and the prime minister of England

Note: Our views have not changed since the unforgiving loss of Julia Rothman and Nile, there will be revenge.

Time is ticking,

Yours Sincerely,

Scorpia

1 This is not fiction.

Alex Rider read it and reread it before looking dumbfounded. Mr Blunt finally broke the silence and said, 'I know that this is your friend and that your caretaker Jack would not like you to go but it is after all, your decision.'

Alex Rider uttered one word, 'Yes.'

Smithers wasn't expecting to see Alex Rider at this time of night, twelve o'clock. Upon request, Smithers delivered his only stock, a bulletproof vest, a spiky mace and a brace.

'What is it?'

'It is a Macecrack, there is a string,'

'Do you pull the string and run like hell?'

'No, you pull the string and let go, it has thousand of pins and spikes, it should temporarily stop any enemy,'

Hesitating, Smithers pulled a small firecracker, a blinding ball, one blast and the unlucky guy would be blinded. It was called a Flamedrone.

'No Smithers,' said Mr Blunt as Smithers attempted to place it in Alex's hand. Smithers groaned in return and said, 'Take this then, it is an amazing aberration invisibility mirror, it will distort your image. It is bulletproof and will stand a couple of hits.'

'Isn't it a little small?'

'Ah, here is the magic, the glass mirror is thin and can be folded three times,'

For the first time, Alex saw the two hinges, it was almost invisible, meanwhile he caught on the last words that Smithers said, 'Shatterproof.'

'Alex, remember, you're my friend, if there is one thing you can give me. I want you back in one piece,'

Alex smiled.

Upon arrival to the airport, he was given the passport that would enable him to travel to America, he was now known as Jack. Mr Blunt had purposefully adopted the name from Jack Starbright. Accompanied by Mrs Jones, he avoided every aspect except the emigration, after he had passed the barrier, he was left alone. Mrs Jones wished him the best of luck and told him to check in at the Starbyte Hotel. As soon as Alex entered the plane, he smelt a foul odour of saliva and vomit.

Wed 27 September 2006, 01:31:36pm: _Continued on Alex Rider 3…_

The flight to San Francisco was dull and boring, the only thing that could be compromised was the peanuts that filled the desk. He was sitting in economy class and had just noticed a vomit bag filled with the remnants of what had appeared to be mushroom and a sausage. Alex whiffed the air away with one hand covering his nose. Perhaps it was luck or was it coincidence but Alex was sitting next to a grandmother who was sleeping on him, he groaned.

'I saw that sonny,'

He smiled, the grandmother wasn't sleeping, he saw the same thing in Yassen, he took out his Nintendo Ds and slotted Mario Kart on it. Across him, a girl who seemed older than she was, waved saying, 'Do you want some company?'

Alex rose up from his seat, leaving his London cap there, 'Hey, how are you?'

'My name is Ashley and I'm fine. Nice to meet you,'

'I'm Al-Jack,'

Alex nearly called out his name and thinking it was not wise attempted to disclose it.

'Do you mind if I call you Al-,'

'Al is my nickname; Jack's my real name,'

Alex saw the same smile on Ashley the same as Sabina! She stared at the window.

'I wish that…' she murmured.

'Have you heard of Alex Rider?' asked Ashley suddenly.

Alex was stunned, how could a girl know about Alex Rider. 'No,' returned Alex, 'who is he?'

Ashley stared at Alex before saying, 'You look a lot like him. Anyway, I read his profile on the internet, his uncle died a couple of years ago and he worked for MI6.'

'Really,' gulped Alex.

'Yes, I have his profile in my bag, here, it has a picture on it.'

'You look like him, Jack, you look like him, it says that he has fair hair, check… You're Alex Rider,'

'How?'

'I have contacts in COBRA which help me to identify people who contributed much, it has everyone in the world on this website. It updates people…'

'Can I borrow the computer for a minute?'

'We're not allowed…'

'Can I borrow it once we're in San Francisco?'

'For a minute, yes,'

'Actually, can you give me the address?'

'Yes, it is you need to do is to give the name in full, with no capital and no spaces. Wow, you saved the world from Stormbreaker and Cray, you beat Yassen Gregorovich…'

The plane had landed at San Francisco Airport! Finally, Alex had to endure almost another three hours until Ashley slept and had to endure another four hours of her talking with envy.'

Alex pulled out the sheet of paper with the numbers and the website, Ashley also gave the password needed, she also warned him to be aware about who is near to you.

Wed 27 September 2006 03:57:27pm, _Continued on Alex Rider 4…_

_Huh! That was obvious!_ Alex did not have time to continue on with the story because the moment he returned to the screen, a kick was launched at his face. Alex swerved at the perfect time only to see a fist ram into his face. There was a man who moved similar to Nile and Yassen, as graceful as a ballerina and as kind as a snake. _The man was from Scorpia_.

'Are you from Scorpia?'

He pulled of the balaclava to reveal a smile of evil, 'Yes.'

'Why are you here?'

'I'm looking for Alex Rider, I need to kill him, I take it that you my friend, are Alex Rider,'

Alex pulled out the mace that Smithers had given him and pulled out the string and released it to hit against the assassin. Anticipated, the assassin kicked the kid's stomach and he fell down as the mace hit his face. The kick had still done its job and Alex Rider was knocked out.

'Mr Blunt?' Mrs Jones had been nervous since she received a report from the manager of the hotel that Alex Rider had arrived at his suite, quite beaten up. Mr Blunt of course had not been informed about this incident and had a sliver of a smile before saying, 'Rider has some information for us?'

'No, he has been beaten up by an assassin who we think is called Dom. We received a breach on the intranet, just before Rider was caught; we had a breach on the profile of Sabina Pleasure,'

'Rider, where is he?'

'He is knocked out,

'Yes, what should we do sir?'

Dom was still in pain as he contacted the Australian man who hired him, finally, someone took the phone.

'Who is this?'

'Do you have to be that direct?'

'I only do my job,'

'It's Dom, the little sucker used a mace on my face. I want to see Down Under man,'

'You mean Nameless?' the operation officer said coolly.

'Yea, tell him I beat the sucker up real bad,'

'Fine, he'll meet you under the San Francisco Bridge at three o'clock tonight,'

'Tell him I want my fifty thousand now…'

The phone was cut off and Dom laid back for a couple of hours of rest, it was taking a lolly from a baby.

Alex woke up, he had a dream, it was his uncle Ian Rider (Ian hated to be called an uncle) and he was reminded of Yassen who appeared held by cables , one moment, he folded his arms, the next, he pulled out two pistols and fired at the window, Alex then was reminded when a sniper had a go at him, it was like falling into a deep sleep. Alex thought, _was it better to kill a twenty-seven year old man who never turned twenty eight than a fourteen year old who would never turn fifteen. _He looked around his room to discover that it had been morphed into an executive suite with yellowed walls and gold leaf plated lighting on the ceiling. Wed 27 September 2006, 07:04: 39pm

It had been an hour since Alex woken up and not much had changed, a business shirt was provided for him and so did a silky pants, he had been provided with a blazer that held a couple of secret pockets and a nice Tissot watch, it was awfully nice of MI6 to provide him with this sort of gifts. Alex would have preferred a Rolex however, a Tissot was fine. He took a nice long shower in the spa and took the time to examine his body; it was filled with scratches and cuts. He washed his hair and took out a folded photograph of his mother and father. Only a year ago, he found himself convinced that John Rider was a contract killer who worked with Scorpia and he now knew the truth. It took Alex a while to adjust to the changes but now, he was fine in classes, from economy to first. Alex decided to call Jack Starbright after he showered and see how she was. First, he examined the big bruise on his left arm, it was dark purple and he shivered at the thought. Wearing goose bumps, Alex changed the water temperature, from twenty nine to thirty three, at first it was hot, now, it was just right. Alex got up and as he walked through the door, he had a blast of cold air; he'd just remembered, he hadn't turned off the air conditioner.

Jack Starbright was cleaning the vase collection that once belonged to Ian Rider when she'd received a call from Alex Rider.

'Hello Alex,'

'Hello, Jack, I'm in San Francisco in a hotel,'

'MI6 sent you right?'

'Yea, I just wanted to check up that you are fine,'

'I'm alright, hey, I need to go, there's a ring on the door,'

'Strange, I didn't hear anything,'

Jack reached out to the door and rang the door bell twice and placed the phone on the door.

'Ouch, that was loud,'

'Yes, I need to go, take care of yourself okay?'

'Same, see ya,'

Jack placed the phone back on the box and returned to the vase collection when the door bell rang, unexpectedly. Jack opened the door and screamed…

Alex Rider dried his hair and wore his business shirt that was accompanied with a tie. It was very silky and was very effective in trapping his body heat. It took only a few minutes for the shirt to act as a sweater. The tie, suited the shirt very well and had a name tag: 'Alex Rider.' On the other side, Alex noted: 'Jack Starbright,' Alex wondered why Jack's name was written. Alex produced a blazer that was as smooth as water but as thin as a thread. For the first time, he noticed an aluminum case that felt like shark's skin. Alex opened it, he saw a thin bulk of twenty dollar bills tied along the side with a ribbon: Alex Rider. Along side, Alex noted the fifty dollar bills and the ten dollar bills that were packed in the same way: Alex Rider. Alex saw a box of pens, a ball point, a fountain and a Switzerland knife branded pen that showed the cross. Alex saw a long, elongated box and when he opened it, his eyes gleamed with surprised; Smithers had provided flame thrower capsules. Alex Rider was set to find Sabina Pleasure.

The manager at the San Francisco hotel was surprised to see Alex Rider up so early, so early that he rang up MI6. Alex proceeded to the receptionist. 'Hello, I am Alex Rider and I wonder if you could provide me a map?'

'No,' the receptionist said blandly without looking up, 'go to the customer service over there.'

He pointed.

'Thank you,'

Alex Rider proceeded to the customer service and enquired for a map. He bought the book of some sixty four pages for sixteen bucks. _It was a stupid rip off._ The officer on duty that sold Alex the map was working for MI6 and as Alex left, he contacted MI6. Alex now realised that he needed to satisfy his hunger and so he dined at the restaurant. The menu included exotic foods such as Peking Duck, Siu Youk (BBQ pork,) Pizza and America's favorite, hamburgers, double meat, triple vegetables and three packets of ketchup. While sighting his food, a couple of teenager girls waved and some said, 'Jess, what happened to **Sab**?'

'I don't know, ask Chelsea,'

Sab was the magic word and Alex rushed to see them, he brushed through the couples and went to meet the girls. Thu 28 September 2006 01:31:22 pm _Continued on Alex Rider 6…_

Gustaf nodded. Alex had just noticed that there were ants, big ants, a few cockroaches and a large millipede. Sitting down for so long, Alex had know known that he was in pain if he attempted to stand up. Alex still tried to stand up and his bone moved at such a fast rate that it cracked. Gustaf turned and pulled a pistol out before firing, the Australian said, 'See who is eavesdropping.' For a moment, Jack was forgotten and she tried to kick the Australian man in the most sensitive part of all… Unfortunately, the Australian man saw this and caught her hand before smiling and saying, 'Don't annoy me, I am not to be annoyed.' He released the grip before saying, 'Please don't make me do it again.'

'Gustaf,'

Gustaf was gone.

Alex was running. Gustaf had seen him. As soon as he attempted to escape, Gustaf shot at him, it missed him by inches. He stopped running as he reached a barrier, there were two ways, one, the stairs, the other, the sewerage pipes. If he went up the stairs, he would certainly be seen. On the other hand, if he stayed in the sewerage, he may have a chance. Alex chose the stairs. Gustaf had caught up, his pistol in its holder and Gustaf took off his coat, it was a MiuMiu. Underneath the coat, Gustaf unsheathed a sword that was a cross between the samurai and a dagger; he was an expert on the same techniques as Nile had once displayed in Malagosto. There was another sword, its twin.

'Come out boy, please don't make me go after you,'

Alex hid behind a plaque, it was smooth and was made of marble, he didn't regret for a minute that he this option. A red flare opened and blasted the plaque, it came centimeters of Alex, the rubble fell onto Alex. He resigned.

'I'll come out!'

Alex had leapt out with his hands up, he had taken his first and good look at Gustaf. At once, Alex saw a patch of yellow hair and a face littered with wrinkles, still, Gustaf was not old. He was a brown, tall man, feminine eyes comparable to Mrs Rothman, with yellow hair, he was like Yassen. He wore a scrappy jacket under the coat. His hands branded a Rolex, Oyster.

'What a pleasure Mr Rider, Mr Gregorovich has told me a lot about you,'

'What have you done to Jack and Sabina?'

'What? You mean the woman who called me an aberrant, come on, you saw her, she is simply here so that we could ensure that you would come to us. As for the girl, she has been detained, I see that Scorpia have attempted to abet you but to no avail. I'll tell you what, I'll give you two opportunities, I'll let you go this time and you run along now, or you could accompany me and I will send to the girl and that rogue who called me a retard, choose,'

'I might add that we will be leaving in five and a half hours in the commencing of the Secret Ryo Strike, if you try and penetrate the building in this time, you will be caught, if you try tomorrow, you will find a deserted building,'

'Why are you working for Scorpia and what is Secret Ryo Strike about?'

'It not for youngsters to know, if you can beat me however, I will help you, I am a man who helps,'

'Give me Jack Starbright and Sabina,'

'Why? You pose no threat,'

'If I come with you, can you release Jack and Sabina?'

'Wait, I'll discuss this with my employer, if you so much as move, I will gun you down,'

Gustaf pulled up the transmitter, 'Hello boss,'

'Yes mate,'

'There's a boy who wants to make a deal with you,'

'Go on, let him talk to me,'

'Boy, come here and don't touch the sponge, it costs a lot and quite frankly, I don't want to pay for it,'

Alex stepped forward and at the last second, lashed out a kick, Gustaf pulled out the sword and defended himself.

'Boss, he'll turn himself in, Rider, for the rush bag and the American,'

'Bring him in,'

'See ya,'

Gustaf said, 'Boy, I gave you a chance and you try and attack me, you are the biggest piece of bullshit I have ever seen. I thought that you would be at least grateful. Now, I will make sure that you pay.'

With that, he kick Alex in the stomach and Alex was out.

Thu 28 September 2006, 10:45:20pm _Continued on Alex Rider 8…_

'Alex Rider, not bad, Gustaf, I'll consider increasing your pay, say fifty nine thousand?'

Gustaf smiled, 'Where do you want me to take him? Should I take him to his friend's cell or to the shark tank?'

Alex Rider was knocked out or it can be said that he was sleeping.

'We're leaving at soon, chuck in the shark tank,' the Australian man replied without any accent. 'What do we do with his two friends?'

'We'll leave them here, it's a choice, MI6 don't know we're here, disable the boy of all gadgets, make certainty that he has nothing to help him to get out. Set the self destruct to three hours, if he wants to follow us, he'll leave his friends.'

'Yes sir,'

Gustaf led Alex into the change rooms before searching him and removing him of the blazer and all the gadgets that Smithers had given him. Alex snored.

Gustaf relieved him by slapping Alex until he woke up before saying, 'Yassen told me once that you had courage, I have taken the entire items you held with the exception of the shirt and the pants. The tank below which coincidentally is circular is owned by my employer, he fancies Great White sharks and electric eels. For some reason which I do not know, he also put in a clan of piranhas, if you can survive for ten minutes, I'll leave. Letting you know, all the items that you held are being destroyed so you cannot cheat and call FBI or MI6. Now, there's less than three hours until this place goes Kaboom! So, you have a choice, you can follow us or you can save your friends, their in C block.'

With that, Gustaf nodded to the guard and Alex fell into the tank as the grills moved away. Alex took a breath before sinking into the ocean of creatures. There was a shark, a large, white shark that lunged towards Alex, a large fish with teeth just as large lunged at Alex as well.

'Oops, I forgotten to say that they haven't been fed for three days and the piranhas are trained to eat the hell out of you,'

Alex just swam out of the way as the giant shark attempted a second lunge, it bit the water eating

a clear, empty space. The water was blue, like the swimming pool but tasted like the sea. Thanks to the dark blue colour, Alex had to depend on his own instincts.

Alex who was advised by Gustaf ran down the corridors of W block, the only block that links to C block. Alex still held the guard's gun in his hand; his mind however was not on the gun. On the contrary however, Alex's mind was on both, the freedom of Sabina and on Gustaf. What did he mean by Yassen? Alex turned through and turned to reach a door that looked like a pentagon. Gustaf had told him that it was accessible through a key card and as Alex turned to peek, he saw two guards. _They must have key cards._ He turned back, Alex released the pistol from his pocket, gripping it, Alex turned.

Adari was a black officer who had decided that working for Scorpia owned more advantages than disadvantages. He had earned five thousand a fortnight, which was more than most people's income. The other man was Beigne, he was a Venetian, he also was personally chosen by Mrs Rothman. He was a mercenary who was paid more that Adari, at five thousand euros a week. It was Adari who first saw the fair haired boy, what was peculiar was that he held a pistol.

'Don't move,'

Beigne moved as fast as a squirrel and attempted to take the teenager down, what he received however, was a kick to the face. Adari put his hands up and ran, unfortunately, Alex caught up with him.

Alex knew that these two guards were new to this job, if they had been fast witted, they would contacted the Australian man to inform him that the boy had escaped. Alex saw it, the key card.

Inside the penthouse, Sabina Pleasure saw a shadow of a short man and walked up to the door. She walked to the door, planning to slap the man in charge, Sabina didn't care if she got killed, simply because she had been harassed and kidnapped.

Outside, Alex was annoyed. So far, he attempted to open the door, it was a rubbery substance that when charged, led erected, when the card was inserted, the door was very flexible. Alex had just had it, he ran back about to pounce the substance when he had seen a tall teenager, similar height to himself, Alex called, 'Move away!'

Jack Starbright rose from her seat as she heard Alex's voice, 'Alex, it me and Sabina.'

'Stand back, I coming,'

In a second, Alex Rider appeared through the silicone force field, there was a membrane on the floor and Alex fell on Sabina's feet, he smiled. 'Alex,' Sabina said, giving Alex a hug, 'what are you doing here?'

'Scorpia kidnapped you,'

'Who and what is Scorpia?'

'Sabotage, Corruption, Intelligence and assassination,'

'We need to get out,'

'Why aren't there any guards?'

'I just remembered, this place will blow in a short period of time,' Alex said, remembering what Gustaf had told him.

'Let's go,'

'Gustaf, Gustaf!'

'I heard you the first time o bearded one!'

'"O bearded One?"' the Australian said noticing his beard.

'My apologies, I was agitated,'

'That's right, apologize!'

'What is it that you want?'

'Have you locked it?'

'Yes,'

In actual fact, the doors were not locked, Gustaf had purposefully ensured that should Alex Rider escape, it would be a lot easier. If Alex could not escape in thirty minutes, he would die, along with the knocked out guards trapped inside. MI6 could not enter from the outside unless somebody inside opened the door. Scorpia struck once again and when this hideout is blown up, the whole bridge will blow up and the cars on it will fall.

Alex had exited accompanied by Sabina and Jack, he took out the guns from the pockets of Adair and Beigne. Alex handed one to Jack who took it and found five out of six cartilages were full. Alex handed the other one to Sabina who refused and pushed it back to Alex. Alex began to speak but Sabina cut across him, 'You need it more than I do.'

Alex guided them out of the building which was relatively easy, all they needed to do was to follow the tunnels and with the help of Gustaf, escaped. Sabina held his hand all the way through and Alex found that their hands were locked together, as tight as stone. Forevermore…

Fri 29 September 2006, 08:25:19pm_ Continued on Alex Rider 11…_

Jack wasn't about what Alex had to say, neither was Sabina. After the short reunion, Jack and Sabina were told to remain in the hotel- neither knew of the danger of what was about to happen to the San Francisco Bridge. The only reason why Alex knew this was because Gustaf tipped him off, _What was Gustaf's game? _So far, Alex had told Jack and Sabina to return to the hotel and phone MI6's Alan Blunt. Jack was worried about Alex and Sabina didn't want to stay at the hotel, instead, she wanted to help. Alex knew that there was no point arguing and said, 'Jack, I need you to contact Mr Blunt and tell him that Scorpia have left a time bomb under the San Francisco bridge. Sabina, just help Jack,'

'No,'

'Just go,'

Alex leapt into the door with intentions to save the officers inside and Sabina followed.

'Sabina, I told you to go with Jack,'

Sabina took Alex's hand and grasped it. Alex did not stop, there was no time to save for this moment and the both of them ran into the chambers.

Jack ran back to the city where she caught a taxi, 'Take me to the police station immediately.'

'You got it,'

Gustaf stood worried, _he had left Alex Rider alone, the opposite of what he had promised Yassen in their last assassinations._

It was one and a half years ago,

Yassen had just killed Ian Rider, both were working for Herod Sayle and it wasn't Gustaf's fault but he was still blamed for a security breach of security and Herod nearly killed him but some how, Yassen had saved him. Before Yassen died, he told Gustaf to not kill Alex Rider until he is eighteen.

It would be just over five minutes until the bomb will kill many people and destroy the San Francisco Bridge, Alex and Sabina were collecting the guards Beigne and Adair before turning back in. It seemed that there were a group of scientists who didn't know anything about the explosion. On the contrary, they were sitting down, drinking coffee and smoking at the base of the San Francisco Bridge. It was news when they found out that the whole building was evacuated. Alex spoke to a man, about thirty years old, and although he had told the scientists that the building was about to explode, the majority of the staff simply laughed. It seemed that they trusted Scorpia. One woman however, went to Alex and asked how he knew this, in reply, he heard Gustaf say this. At once, the woman's face hardened and she said to her colleagues, 'Gustaf told him this, if he is telling the truth, the building could explode at any time, I'm leaving.'

'Fine Sarah, if you get into trouble, don't ask for help. Besides, why would Gustaf want to kill us?'

Alex and Sabina had given up. They had tried to convince the scientists but to no avail, and as the building was about to explode, Alex, Sabina and Sarah escaped the time bomb.

'Hello?' called Jack.

'Hello!'

'Yes, madam, how may I help you?'

'I need to call MI6, London,'

'Excuse me?'

'I need to call MI6 London,'

'Is this a sick joke?'

'No, I just escaped from a time bomb,'

'What is your name?'

'Jack Starbright,'

The man on duty wrote the name down and told Jack to sit down. In fact, the same man was a Scorpia agent under cover. Jack sat on the metal seat and waited for the policeman to respond to her pleas.

Sabina, Alex and Sarah ran out the building and dragged the two guards to the nearest park, no sooner that they escaped the premises, the bomb went off and the three witnesses saw the San Francisco fell down into the river. Cars the size of the small die cast metals fall into the river. There was a flash of light and there was a large, colossal blast that extended to the buildings nearly a hundred metres away. Sat 30 September 2006, 06:17:55pm _Continued on Alex Rider 12…_

Sarah Howe was a scientist working for L'Oreal, the largest cosmetic based company. And although she also worked for Scorpia, she did not know what in the world Secret Strike was. Alex tried in numerous ways before giving up. Sabina on the other hand, sat down, pointing the pistol while staying watch. When Alex finally gave up, she stood up and told him that the both of them should find Jack at the hotel. As they were walking back to the hotel, they found police cars colliding with other cars to get to the crash site. Alex had little energy to spare and was walking, admiring the lights. Alex could spend a night with Sabina, a night to make up for the year of loneliness that each had suffered. Alex and Sabina spent the day walking in the park, across bridges before he finally found a chair. The chair had a sign engraved upon it, 'Lover's Lane.' Unfortunately, this had no effect upon Sabina and Alex who were happy to be in each other's presence.

'What have you done in this past years?'

'Waiting for the dream day we would meet each other. How is London?'

'Sabina, there's something I need to tell you,'

Sabina looked at Alex in those pearly eyes; her pale face was the only brightness that stood between him and the moon. She turned to face him, they had hands in hands. Sabina wavered a kiss on Alex's lips and he looked at her. The truth in her eyes showed that they would never see each other again and that this was his only chance to express his loneliness to her. Just a year ago, he watched her walk out of his life and now he asked himself why. Sabina had walked out of his life once, it could definitely happen again. This could be their last time to see each other for a long time, if not forever. Alex would return to London, Liverpool Street where his true family lies, his father, John, a spy, his uncle, Ian, a spy and himself, Alex, a spy. But was this more important than Sabina? Alex had a choice, an opportunity to live in America, fostered by Jack, and he could see Sabina and he could forget the stress of MI6. He could forget Yassen, Gustaf, Mr Blunt and Mrs Jones. Alex could turn his back on MI6, forget Stormbreaker, Point Blanc, Skeleton Key, Eagle Strike, Scorpia and Ark Angel, he could be an ordinary teenager. He had a choice because he was a human. It was Ian Rider's hope that Alex would follow in his footsteps, he could end it as simple as that.

'Alex,'

'Sorry Sab, I was just thinking,'

'I mean, one year ago, you walked out of my life and I nearly got killed by a sniper. If I turn my back on MI6, well, I could be an ordinary boy who could do ordinary things,'

'Like what?'

'Skateboard, surf, rollerblade, I could put it behind me,'

'Alex, I really missed you at first and two days ago, I was thinking about you, about how I would never see you. What I'm trying to say is that you have a choice, a choice to try and ignore me, you could also try to ignore MI6 but yes, in the end, the past will catch up. It is your life,'

'Yea, Sabina,'

A man stepped out of the bushes, he wore a balaclava and he held a gun. It took Alex a few precious seconds to realize this and to accept it. He found himself in the same position as Yassen Gregorvich one year ago.

'Do you plan to kill me?'

'Gimme the watch,'

Alex refused.

The man was new, his hand shook uncontrollably, he placed his other hand on the other to stabilize on the gun, he fired.

As Alex was thrown off, the man took the Tissot watch and bolted away.

'Sabina,' Alex called weakly, he had moments, seconds even to live, 'I am sorry. Go to Jack and go to the San Francisco hotel and call Mr Blunt.'

Alex's life was failing him and he noticed that his heart, his soul and his life recided with the darkness of his past and before he passed out, he found himself thinking the words that Sabina said,

**It is your life**.

Sun 1 October 2006, 01:26:56pm. End of transmission…

Author's Note:

The ending has finally come and here is the conclusion: Sabina returned back to the hotel and found Mr Blunt's phone number. Fifty SAS men rampaged and found the Secret Ryo Strike assault weapon and soon captures the Australian Scorpia agent and all the corrupt policemen in the police station were caught and punished.

Jus to tell you guys, please again, don't give me flames…


End file.
